Cartridge carrier for repeating shotguns



2 SHEETS-SHEET 1 Q6 mm Q R Rn Jan. 27, 1953 G W W O R v. A. BROWNING 2,626,475

CARTRIDGE CARRIER FOR REPEATING SHOTGUNS 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 grwem M N Z T 1 Jan. 27, 1953 Filed April 15, 1948 and: improved arrangement ofza Patented Jan. 27, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CARTRIDGE CARRIER FOR REPEATING SHOTGUNS ValyA. Browning, Ogden, Utah Application April13, 1948,. Serial No; 20,739

8 Claims.

.This invention relates to shotguns'of the type having a barrel; a breech blockad apted to recoil -upon firing of the gun, and a carrier for transtion.

An object of the :invention is to provide a new shell transfer carrier and-means forroperatingthesame, the

arrangement being characterized by its simplicity in construction, its economy in. manufacture and its effectiveness of operation.

A iurther object of the invention is to provide an improved shotgun particularly adapted to take care of two shots in succession and which may be manually loaded in a very-simpl and easy manner.

A still further aim of the invention is to provide a shotgun of this type whereby a shell, of

any'length Within recognized standards, may be manually positioned upon the carrier by merely inserting the shell through a loadingopening in the side of the receiver. -Wi-th--my improved arrangement, if no shell is in the gun, the first shell, when positioned on the carrier, isimmedi-ately-transferred by the carrier to aposition where the breech block (the same having been released from recoil position by the insertion of the shell) moves the shell into the firing chamher of: the barrel.

One shell having been thus positioned, the second shell may now be placed upon the carrier by inserting the shell through said opening and this second shell is maintained upon the carrier and against any likelihood of it being thrown out through the loading opening :upon recoil of the gun. When the first shell is fired, the shell on the carrier is lifted to a position where the breech block on its forward movement will feed the same into the firing chamber. A'particular advantage of my improved arrangement is that each shell may be placed upon the carrier and will be properly maintained thereon without the necessity of doing otherwise thanin- 1, serting the shell itself, the use of closures for the loading opening in order to prevent the shell from being kicked out'ofplace-being eliminated.

While I have shown in the present illustrative disclosure the improvements of the present invention applied to a two'shot gun, it is to-beunderstood that certain of my improvements are not limited, in application, thereto.

' Other objects will be in part obviousand in part pointed out more in detail hereinafter.

r The invention accordingly consists in the features -;of construction v combination. .of ,elements and arrangement of:- parts -which.will. be exempli- .fied in'the construction -hereaiter se-t .,for.th :and

the-scope of theapplicationofi which Will..-be, in-

dicated in the appended claims.

The followingdescriptionwill be morereadily understood by reference to theaccompanying drawings inwhich similar reference -numerals 1O ref-er to similarparts and in which -=Figure 1 is a-secti-onal view taken longitudinallyand vertically through a firearm in- -whichcone embodiment 'of- 'the present invention is gincorporated;

--Fig.- 2 is asectional view-taken horizontally Fig. 3 isa side, elevationalviewcthereof and 4 is a press-sectional view taken online 4-4 of-Fig. B-and looking in the directionofthe arrows.

"Referring to the drawings'in detail; the firearm shown has a 'frame or-receiver Alba-barrel! l, and a-stock-l 2. --The'rearend otthebarrel; which is conventionally-shown as--being-in theformaof a barrel "extension 'I 3 ;--is -slidably-mountedsin= an opening in theforward *endof thereceiver. ---'I- he receiver has the usualeieotionopening-l l. Secured to the forward end of the-receiver'and disposed beneath the barrel is a 'guide-ri 5- for the recoil spring-1 6. '"Within-the receiver isa breech "block- 2fl which-may be of any suitable :construction; the-'samebeing shown-more'or less conventionally inthedrawings. Pivctedto the breech block is a'lockingblock'having awrearwardlwfac- 'ing'shoulder adapted to engage a locking shoulder inthe barrelextensionfor looking the breech blockto the barrel: extensionsovthat (the same b will recoil in unison upon firing of-- ashell. I he breech I block is urgedb forwardly" to its breech closing po'sition'by' means 'ofan aotion spring'i I locatedwithin the -stock. This f action-a spring bears against a guide-pieces 2,2. Pi-votedf-to the lo'cking block is a link 23, theerear end otwhich bears against the guide piece: -'About-v the-guide is arecoil spring -16. The arrangement sonfar described *isembodied generally in 'the rfirearm disclosed"- in- 'my pending application aSerial; eNo. 5605M filed October- 28; -194 l -nowi Patent- No.

2,480,074. With respect ito-thepoperation of'rthe partsdescribed, itis-here sufficienttogsaywthat,

engaged from the barrel and will-continueitorecoil, andduring the continuing-recoiling.imoveger plate.

ment of the breech block, the barrel will be advanced by the recoil spring to firing position. The action spring will then return the breech block to breech closing position with respect to the barrel which has already been brought to firing position.

The firearm will, of course, be provided with a suitable firing mechanism, the same being shown more or less diagrammatically in the drawings. This mechanism includes a trigger plate 25 located in the lower rear corner of the receiver, a trigger 26, and a hammer 21.

In accordance with the present invention, the receiver has a loading opening 30 in its side wall, and disposed below the ejection opening and within the receiver is a carrier 3| having a shell receiving or supporting portion 32 which is normally disposed in a position to receive a shell inserted through the loading opening. The carrier has a pair of arms 33 extending rearwardly from the shell receiving portion, these arms being in straddling relation to the firing mechanism and being pivoted between their ends to the trig- In the present illustrative disclosure, the arms of the carrier are pivoted by means of pivot pins 34 to lugs or ribs 35 extending upwardly from the tri ger plate. Along that side of the shelf 32 which is opposite the loading opening is an upstanding flange 36 for laterally limiting the extent to which the shell may be inserted into position on the carrier. This flange, adjacent its upper forward end. is inclined rearwardly and upwardlv as at 31 and then downwardly and rearwardly at 38 so that the same may properly cooperate with t e breech block, as later described. Carried by the rear ends of the arms of the carrier is a locking do Ml for locking the breech block in approximately its rearmost recoiled position. The link has an abutment 4! which cooperates with this dog. The dog is normallv urged into breech block holding position and the carrier is normally ur ed towards shell deli ering position by a spring 42, this arran ement bein genera lv s milar to that shown in my said pending application.

The numeral 45 designates a carrier latch pivotallv mounted in a recess 46 in the wall of the receiver op osite the loadin opening and normallv ur ed in to latching position w th respect to the carrier by a leaf spring 41. The carrier latch, adjacent its rear end. has an edge 1 8 which is adapted to overlie and engage an ed e 49 on the flange of the carrier in order to hold t e latter in down position after the last shot is fired or there is no shell on the carrier. The rear ed e 50 of the latch is adapted to engage in front of the rim of the shell so as to hold the shell against accidental displacement and at this time t e shell holds the carrier latch out of the path of movement of the carrier. At the rear end of the loading opening 30 is a lip havin a rearwardly facing shoulder 52 which is laterally aligned with the rear edge 50 of the carrier latch so that this shoulder and that edge cooperate to hold the properly inserted shell against accidental displacement.

The carrier latch is provided with a button 53 by means of which it may be released from the carrier, this being done'particularly when it is desired to manually close the action. In order to assist in the manual loading of the shell on the carrier, there is provided a pusher 55 mounted for limited reciprocation in the rearward end of the guide and normally urged rearwardly by a relatively light spring 55 within the guide. The forward edge 51 of the trigger plate constitutes a rearward stop against which the head of the shell engages.

The operation will now be briefly described and, as a starting point, it may be assumed that there is no shell in the gun and that the breech block is held in its retracted position by the locking dog 48', a condition which it assumed when the last previous shot has been fired. A shell may now be inserted through the loading opening 3!] by placing the shell in the inclined position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2 with its forward end in the receiving opening and against the pusher 55 and then moving the shell forwardly to compress the pusher spring until the head of the shell clears the rear end of the loading opening and then pushing the rear end of the shell laterally into position. Such manual loading will cause the head of the shell to press the carrier latch out of the path of the carrier which latter will thereupon spring upward carrying the shell into position to be loaded into the firing chamber. The breech block being thus released will snap forward and move the shell into the firing chamber. As the breech block moves forwardly to its breech closing position, the lower edge thereof wipes against the edge 38 of the flange of the carrier so that the latter is cammed or forced down to its shell receiving position whereupon the carrier latch will move into latching position therewith. Another shell may now be inserted through the loading opening and onto the carrier in the manner previously described but, in this instance, while the carrier latch is released, the breech block, due to its engagement with the flange of the carrier, will.hold the carrier down, and the head of the shell will engage and be maintained in engaged position behind the rear edge of the latch and the shoulder 52 of the lip. Upon firing of the shell in the firing chamber, the barrel and breech block will recoil in unison until rearward movement of the barrel is stopped by the recoil spring, and then the breech block will continue to recoil and during such movement the spent shell is extracted from the firing chamber and ejected through the ejection opening in the usual manner by a suitable extractor and ejector. During the recoil movement of the breech block, after the recoil movement of the barrel has been stopped, the carrier is retained in down position because of the engagement of the flange 36 against the bottom of the advancing barrel extension, and while the flange is so engaged, the breech block reaches its rearmost position and the dog 40 engages the shoulder 4| on the link, thereby locking the breech block back. As the barrel approaches its firing position, the barrel extension moves out of engagement with the flange 36 of the carrier, whereupon the carrier, under the influence of the reaction spring and the spring 42, is raised to a position where the shell thereon is in line with the firing chamber and, of course, the line of movement of the breech block. The breech block, when the carrier is thus raised, is released from its rearmost position and, therefore, under the influence of the action spring, moves forwardly and forces the raised shell into the shell chamber of the barrel. This sequence of operation is repeated after a shot as long as fresh shells are loaded into the loading opening. If both shots are fired, the carrier latch comes into operation and the mechanism remains open, the parts now being in the same position as described at a starting point.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely differwithoutdeparting from f intended that all matterrcontained instha above description or shown in the accompanying draw- 5 centlembodiments I of this invention-could :bei-made .the scopeirthereofltxitis -"ings shallbeinterpreted as illustrative andznot "ina limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the language used in the following claims .is intended :to cover all of the generic :and: specific featuresiof thezinforwardly therefrom, a breech-z-block mounted for 4 reciprocation, in. the, receiver ,behindihe barrel, said receiver having a loading chamber beneath .the-bre'ech block, a carrier mounted for movement in'saidchamber between a depressed car- ;tridge' receiving position-and an elevated position wherejitholds the cartridge thereon in alignment lwithilthe barrel; said-receiver having in one of its sidewalls a'loadingopening through which a cartridge may be inserted into said chamberand eontolsaid carrier when-the'latter is in depressed position, and a rearwardly facing shoulder-in said receiveradja'cent' the'rear-end of said opening eandlb'ehindwvhich"the'rim. of the cartridge is ad'apt'edto engage when-properly positioned-upon the carrier.

2. In a firearm, a receiver, a barrel extending forwardly therefrom, a breech block mounted for reciprocation in the receiver behind the barrel, said receiver having a loading chamber beneath the breech block, a carrier mounted for movement in said chamber between a depressed cartridge receiving position and an elevated position where it holds the cartridge thereon in alignment with the barrel, said receiver having in one of its side walls a loading opening through which a cartridge may be inserted into said chamber and directly positioned onto said carrier when the latter is in depressed position, and a carrier latch having a rear end adapted to overlie a portion of the carrier to hold the same in depressed position when a cartridge is not on the carrier, the rear end of said carrier latch constituting an abutment behind which the rim of the cartridge is adapted to engage when the latter is positioned upon the carrier whereby the cartridge is held against accidental movement with respect to the carrier.

3. In a firearm, a receiver, a barrel extending forwardly therefrom, a breech block mounted for reciprocation in the receiver behind the barrel, said receiver having a loading chamber beneath the breech block, a carrier mounted for movement in said chamber between a depressed cartridge receiving position and an elevated position where it holds the cartridge thereon in alignment with the barrel, said receiver having in one of its side walls a loading opening through which a cartridge may be inserted into said chamber and onto said carrier when the latter is in depressed position, and a carrier latch having a rear end arranged to overlie a portion of the carrier when the latter is in depressed position and no cartridge is upon the carrier, a forwardly facing fixed shoulder in the receiver and against which the head of the cartridge is adapted to engage for limiting rearward movement of the cartridge, the rear end of said carrier latch constituting a rearwardly facing shoulder behind which the flange of the cartridge is adapted to engage when the cartridge is positioned upon the carrier, and

i:springzmeansmgingzsaidocarrierislatclrinwardly ofthezreceiver.

4;:z1n a firearm; a: receiver-ca:barrelzlextendins forwardly: therefromea:breech blockgmounted for 5 reciprocationiinthe receiver. behindithe'v barrel,

said receiver having a loading chamber beneath L the breech block, tax carrier mounted; for::mo.ve-

\ ment in, said: chamber.: betweeni a .depressedzcartridge .receivingposition and an elevatedlposition whereiitholds'rthe cartridge: thereon in alignment withu-thebarreh; said receivenhaving inonenf its --'side walls-1a :loadingcopening :throughz which: a

:cartridgeimayibe insertedrinto said .chamberiand onto said carrier when thea-latterois rin-depressed rlposition and. a rearwardly iacingrifixed shoulder zomthe wall; llIiSBfi-dl loading 'openingiand located v ad-j acentethereariendibf said opening andhehind -'zwhich.ctherfiange bf; a.1;cartridge'..=.is;: adaptedgto iengagewhenpositionedupcn thecarrier.

'1 5. :In ,alfirearmy; a: receiver provided with zside walls;.,a; barrel carried bythe.receiver,; ar;hrcech blockimounted for: reciprocation in the-"receiver, a carrier mounted between the side walls: ofithe receiver and below. said breech bloclezand' having I a cartridge receiving portion mounted for:movement between :a. depressed cartridge; receiving position and an elevated position, ;one of. the

1 side walls of said 'receiver havinga loading; open- 1 ing :throughnwhichia cartridge 'xmayrbe-gpassed c .onto'said cartridge-receiving portioniof :the {carrier when the latter is in depressed position, a carrier latch opposite said loading opening and arranged to overlie the cartridge receiving portion of the carrier when the latter is in depressed position, and an abutment on the first mentioned wall of the receiver adjacent the rear end of said loading opening and behind which the flange of a cartridge is adapted to engage when positioned upon the carrier, said carrier latch having at its rear end an abutment laterally aligned with said first mentioned abutment and behind which the flange of the cartridge is adapted to engage.

6. In a firearm, a receiver, a barrel extending forwardly therefrom, a breech block mounted for reciprocation in the receiver behind the barrel, said receiver having a loading chamber beneath the line of movement of the breech block, a carrier mounted for movement in said chamber between a depressed cartridge receiving position and an elevated position, said receiver having in one of its side walls a loading opening through which a cartridge may be inserted into said chamber and onto said carrier when the latter is in depressed position, a rearwardly facing shoulder in said receiver adjacent the rear end of said opening and behind which the rim of the cartridge is adapted to engage when positioned upon the carrier, and a rearwardly spring pressed plunger at the forward end of said chamber and arranged to urge a cartridge on the carrier rearwardly to a position where the flange of the cartridge engages behind said abutment.

7. In a firearm, a receiver provided with side walls, a barrel carried by the receiver, a breech block mounted for reciprocation in the receiver, a carrier mounted between the side Walls of the receiver and below said breech block and having a cartridge receiving portion mounted for movement between a depressed receiving position and an elevated position, one of the side walls of said receiver having a loading opening through which a cartridge may be passed onto said cartridge receiving portion of the carrier when the latter is in depressed position, a carrier latch opposite said loading opening and arranged to overlie the cartridge receiving portion of the carrier when the latter is in depressed position, an abutment on the first mentioned Wall Of the receiver adjacent the rear end of said loading opening and behind which the flange of a cartridge is adapted to engage when positioned upon the carrier, said carrier latch having at its rear end an abutment laterally aligned with said first mentioned abutment and behind which the flange of the cartridge is adapted to engage, and a rearwardly spring pressed plunger at the forward end of said chamber and arranged to urge the cartridge rearwardly so as to engage the flange of the shell behind said abutments.

8. In a firearm, a receiver, a barrel, a breech block mounted for reciprocation, said receiver having a chamber below the breech block, a pivoted carrier mounted in the receiver below the breech block and having a cartridge-receiving portion, said receiver having a loading opening in one of its side walls and adjacent said cartridge-receiving portion of the carrier, said cartridge-receiving portion having on the side thereof opposite said loading opening an upstanding flange against which a shell is adapted to engage, the upper edge of said flange being adapted to engage said breech block whereby the carrier is moved downwardly to depressed position as the breech block moves forwardly and is held in said position by the breech block when the 8 breech block is in breech closing position, a spring constantly urging said carrier towards its elevated position, interengaging means between the carrier and breech block releasably maintaining the latter in retracted position after firing the last cartridge in the firearm, and a carrier latch for releasably maintaining the carrier in cartridge-receiving position and movable to unlatching position by a cartridge when the same is positioned upon the carrier.

VAL A. BROWNING.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: i V

i UNITED STATES PATENTS 

